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RE: Picking and Drying Kale in the Winter
Wow!! Thank you for such a great share! Love the goats!! I love that they still have their horns!
It's brilliant how you let the kale freeze. I would have never thought of that. Do they take longer to dehydrate from frozen? I truly need to get a good dehydrator made this year.
We eat alot of spinach. Love the cool start greens! How soon will you start planting in the greenhouse?
It's exciting! Think spring!
I refuse to dehorn our goats. I think it takes away their ability to protect themselves. Also I have heard that some goats experience personality changes after they have their horns removed.
When we ran out of kale for our smoothies I decided to try the frozen kale in the greenhouse. It was a shot in the dark that worked. Haha After I bring the kale in the house it only takes 2 days for it to finish drying. It is so much easier.
I have started some plants in the house now. I will not transfer them out to the greenhouse until late April. I find the nights just get too cold for them. We are low on wood or we could put them in the greenhouse sooner. We do have a wood burning stove in there as well. Actually we brood chicks in the inner greenhouse as well.
Yes think spring for sure. Is it warming up over there yet?
Carey, I don't agree with dehorning goats either. To my understanding horns are a part of their body heat regulation system . I agree about them using their horns for protection. I've seen a goat ram a dog who was attacking her kid. That dog learned that goats are not to be trifled with. The dog was not seriously hurt. Also horns are handy to control them with.
Good thing the dog was not too injured. I have been ramed by a male goat. It is not fun, it took me months to heal. We had a goat that came to our farm and she had no horns. However she was the alpha goat. She bit everyone to get her way. I think goats with horns are more wholesome looking. It is like seeing a cow with horns. We don't see them very often but they look whole. They look more natural.
Thank you so much for sharing.
I feel your pain. I too was ramed by a male goat. He ramed me from behind hitting where my left knee bends. I was flat on my face eating dirt. When I lifted my head he was staring me in the face getting ready to ram my head. I yelled "It ain't goin down like that" He turned and walked away. Eventually I had to put him down he was just too mean.I wonder now if that wasn't the beginning of ridding my life of abuse.
Yes it is not fun. Interesting that you yelled "It ain't goin down like that". When he walked away he must have known you weren't going to back down. I can see how that might be the beginning of you ridding a life of abuse. It must have felt good to be able to stand up to him like that. Eating dirt probably wasn't fun however.
I wish my encounter was like that. I do realize that I had that encounter with our male goat for a reason I am good with it all now. At the time though I had to really do some healing. He reorganized some of my abdomen. He managed to get 2 really good blows in before it was over.
I still love our animals, they are amazing creatures. I just have a very healthy respect for them. I have also learned that male goats don't care what female is cycling. I carry a stick when I have to go into the pen. He just want to mate. A very gentle tap on the top of his horns lets him know that I am not up to playing.
Hearing how you were hurt made me weak in the knees. You know that feeling when your legs feel like rubber?
I love my goats also. My big male Lith is gentle. He was the first goat I helped be born.
Wow the feeling coming thru to me about your goat accident is very strong.
Love you Carey. Take care
Thanks so much for sharing. Sorry I was not expecting to send that energy through. Take care and have a great day. :)
I cannot imagine putting any animal through that process. It baffles me. Factory farming in all its glory.
That is so good to know about the kale. I guess is the same as harvesting Brussels sprouts in the snow. Now that i think more on it. Brilliant!
We are in another cold snap. -30 windchill for about 5 days. I am starting seeds indoors this week. I really want to get a greenhouse up this next year. :)
Always so many great ideas and plans! Lol
Yes and they put the babies through that process of dehorning as well. I think it is cruel.
I have never grown brussel sprouts. Good tip to know thank you.
Another cold snap. Oh my I feel for you. It is in the month of March where those cold snaps can be difficult. Spring is so close you can taste it and you are sitting at -31. Thankfully it is only for 5 days. I will be thinking about you during this cold snap.
Our greenhouse is helpful but unless we have the fire going I find it only gives me a couple extra weeks. Starting seeds inside the house works really well. The greenhouse is great for tomatoes and cucumbers. Our tomatoes and cucumber plants usually get to be 8 feet tall in the greenhouse.
Sunday!!! Above zero on Sunday!! Tshirt weather!! Lol i will be starting my seeds tomorrow for indoors.
I saw the pictures of your amazing greenhouse tomatoes! Very inspirational! Do you can your tomatoes? Pickles with the cucumbers?
Wow how nice to have above temperatures. Yes T shirt weather for sure. Yes my tomatoes and cucumber plants get to be huge. It is almost overwhelming to keep up to them. They love the greenhouse and so does corn actually. I do can tomatoes. Last year I had so many I made tomato juice as well. As for cucumbers we don't eat pickles. I have made pickles for years an we just give them away. Last year I shredded cucumber and then froze it for in soups. We found that was a better use for us.
I imagine you do the same with all of your produce as well?
Last year, not one tomatoe ripened on the vine. I had to ripen them indoors. :( i can my tomatoes simple. Skins on. When i am making things like spaghetti sauce, i just cook the tomatoes, and add what i need and boil it down then. I find i am so busy canning so many things.
I dehydrate things as well. Wonder how well cucs dehydrate? I dehydrate zucchini.
I don't have a freezer :/
We make relishes, pickles...
This year it is my hope to dehydrate more. It saves shelf space, and stores better in the case of the cabin freezing.
So much to think about! Lol
We seem to always have to ripen our tomatoes indoors. The season just doesn't seem long enough here to ripen them on the vine. I also leave my tomato skins on. It is way easier and there is too much harvest to do to fiddle with the skins.
I have dehydrated cucumbers. It works really well. Our cucumbers were a bit sour that year so we didn't eat much of them. I found out that if you plant sunflowers close to the cucumbers it sweetens them up. I never dehydrated zucchini before. I always freeze it or we eat it too fast. That would be hard without a freezer, at least until it is below freezing.
Loads to think about, and loads to do. :)